Tahnai Flentjar: Grafton man, 20, sentenced over police pursuit through Junction Hill, Grafton

A North Coast P-plater downed rum and bourbons before he led police on a wild chase into a paddock and collided with two cop cars while already on a community correction order. Here’s what we know.

A Clarence Valley P-plater downed rum and bourbons before he led police on a wild chase into a paddock and crashed into two cop cars while already on a community correction order.

Grafton man Tahnai Flentjar, 20, fronted Grafton Local Court for sentencing on a raft of charges.

Flentjar pleaded guilty to initiating a police pursuit, drink driving, unlawfully possessing number plates, driving unregistered, uninsured and with an expired licence.

Tahnai Flentjar, 20, outside the court.

Just after midnight on Christmas Eve last year, police spotted Flentjar driving a Holden ute near Flame St, Grafton.

Flentjar “harshly accelerated” when police switched on lights and the pursuit was in full flight.

Flentjar drove in excess of 100kmh and his ute fishtailed and came to a brief stop in a ditch as he took at a turn in to Milton St, Grafton, police state in court documents.

Police chased Flentjar through Grafton and Junction Hill. Generic image.

Flentjar then turned his car’s headlights off and drove to Junction Hill, reaching speeds of 130kmh.

The young driver lost control of his ute again when he turned into Back Lane and the vehicle “spun about 180 degrees”.

Flentjar soon drove into a paddock and was “boxed in” by two police cars.

The ute “managed to get traction” and Flentjar “accelerated into the fully marked police vehicle in front of it before reversing and scraping another police vehicle”.

Tahnai Flentjar outside Grafton Local Court.

Flentjar was arrested and told officers he did not stop because he “had some drinks” and “was scared“.

He later told the officers he had a Jim Beam and two cans of Bundaberg and Coke earlier in the evening.

Flentjar said he attached fake number plates to the ute “to make it look like it was registered”.

Defence lawyer Bronte Winn told the court on Monday Flentjar’s offending was aggravated because he was on a community correction order (CCO) at the time.

She said Flentjar had demonstrated insight into his offending and complied with a curfew bail condition.

Magistrate Jeff Linden convicted Flentjar and sentenced him to a year-long intensive correction order (ICO).